An easy trick to peeling them. Cover them with boiling water for a few minutes, drain and run under cold water for a second until easy to touch. Now all you'll have to do is slice the top and they'll squeeze right out of their skin.

I'm not in Canada, but do ask at your local supermarkets. Around here, every supermarket at some time or other carries the "Birds-Eye" brand of frozen pearl onions, & they're of excellent quality. And "Birds-Eye" does have a presence in Canadian markets. Some markets around here only carry them around the holidays, but it doesn't hurt to ask.

While I have cooked pearl onions from scratch, I fully agree that it's a pain in the a**, & so much easier to toss in a handful or two of the already-blanched frozen ones. I'd make Coq au Vin a lot less than I do without this one shortcut. :)